Brassieres, commonly known as bras, are undergarments made to support a woman's breasts. The cup of the bra is designed to contain the breast. The cup often contains stiffening panels to support the breasts, and the edge of the cup is generally a rib-like, tough material, often containing an underwire to raise the breasts and prevent sagging. Bra wearers complain of rubbing around the cup, sweatiness in the under-bra area, and general itching resulting in many cases in rashes and irritated skin. Consequently, there is a need for a product that keeps the wearer dry and comfortable, and complements wearing a bra.
Furthermore, the bra is an expensive item of clothing. Most women only own a few at a time. The bra often does not last long in its original state, losing color quickly and falling apart at the seams after several washes. Consequently, there is a need for a method of prolonging the useful life of a bra by enabling a woman to wear a bra for longer periods of time between washes.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,246,416 B2 describes a foldable one-piece insert worn between the bra and the body having irritation reducing and/or absorbent material portions which line the bra cup and that lie under the supported breast, and portions which extends toward the torso rear under the bra side straps and a portion extending below the bra line along the torso. Said invention includes straps which wrap around the wearer's torso in order to keep the invention in place. Additionally, said invention provides a simple solution to irritation caused by the metallic straps at the bottom of the bra.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,464,717 B1 describes a bra with hot/cold inserts for a therapeutic device in the form of a vest-like elastic garment adapted to be worn on the human upper torso. The device includes front panels having pockets therein for retaining gel packs. The device is effective in providing warm or cold therapy to the chest and rib areas. The garment can be used by humans of both genders. This invention is limited to therapeutic use.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,690,536 A describes a disposable bra liner comprising three cup-shaped coextensive layers attached together, with each layer presenting a circular periphery. The bra liners further include a structural member attached to the layers for maintaining the shape of the pad. The structural member includes an elastic band attached to the layers at their peripheries and preferably has a plurality of V-shaped folding portions. The invention does not deal with irritation caused by the metal underwire. Furthermore, the invention is held in place with the V shaped flaps (which therefore must be folded over), which does not offer the option of folding or unfolding the V-shaped folding portions, pursuant to the wearer's choice.
US 20120157951 A1 describes a bra liner which has a first sheet of fluid-pervious non-woven material having a first edge and a second edge. A second sheet of fluid pervious non-woven material having a first edge and a second edge is positioned in adjacent relationship to the first sheet. The first edge of the second sheet is joined to the first edge of the first sheet and the second edge of the second sheet is joined to the second edge of the first sheet. A breathable compartment is formed between the first and second sheets. A layer of super absorbent gel material and cotton fluff is positioned in the compartment. Said invention does not deal with irritation caused by the bra's metal underwire.